Bart Scott: Old-School Linebacker, Trash-Talker, Hulkamaniac

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- The Jets broke the huddle at the end of Thursday's practice with an emphatic two-word exclamation. &quot;Can't Wait!&quot; they bellowed together, in mocking tribute to the punctuation Bart Scott put on his instantly-famous postgame interview with ESPN's Sal Paolantonio on Sunday night in New England. It's been a guaranteed giggle-maker all week here as the Jets have been preparing to face the Steelers in the AFC championship game, and Scott knows it's not going to stop anytime soon.

&quot;Just something funny that happened, spur of the moment,&quot; Scott said. &quot;I probably won't live it down for a while, but it comes with the territory.&quot;

Comes with being Bart Scott, who's not the best player -- or even the best linebacker -- on the Jets' great defense but may well be its heart and soul and is, without question, its voice.wholesale nfl jerseys,cheap nhl jerseys,football jerseys,nba shop;winter cap,red bull cap,monster hat,new era hats,dc winter cap;asics running,asics gel shoes,running shoes asics;180 color eyeshadow,mac makeup,mac brush.

&quot;Hulk Hogan,&quot; he said. &quot;Because he was a trend-setter, no different from Ali or Babe Ruth, guys like that. You can only globalize a sport or an industry one time, and he did that. Think what you want about wrestling, but it's a craft, and he was the best at it. He worked at being the best and he entertained you while he did it.&quot;

Scott entertained ESPN's viewing audience Sunday night, zooming in for a landing to talk to Paolantonio and stopping to deliver an impassioned tirade against the Jets' perceived detractors. He barked about those who doubted the defense, said the Patriots' defense couldn't &quot;stop a nosebleed&quot; and, of course, barked &quot;Can't wait!&quot; when Paolantonio told him, &quot;See you in Pittsburgh.&quot; The video has gone viral, as hilariously entertaining videos are wont to do in this day and age -- and having seen it, Scott can understand why.

&quot;I thought it looked pretty crazy,&quot; he said. &quot;But hopefully, people will see it for what it was, which is that it was real.&quot;

Scott is a pure Rex Ryan disciple, an undrafted player who developed and thrived in Baltimore, thanks to Ryan's coaching and belief in him. He followed Ryan to New York when the former Ravens' defensive coordinator got the job running the Jets, and during the first year, served as something of a Ryan interpreter for players who didn't know what to make of their new coach.

&quot;First, when nobody knew anything about me, we had guys on the defensive side -- Jim Leonhard, Bart Scott, Marques Douglas and Howard Green -- who had been with me,&quot; Ryan said. &quot;So you have someone in there thinking, 'Hey, this guy appears to be crazy. Is he crazy?' and those guys can say, 'Yes, he is.' I think that was important.&quot;

There's a definite bond there, which is why, when asked what the postgame interview in New England was all about, Scott explained it as a defense of his beloved coach.

&quot;I was given a platform to get my message out about how I feel about my coach,&quot; Scott said. &quot;He has wide shoulders, and he lets a lot of the stuff that's said roll off of them. But that doesn't mean it doesn't bother him and that doesn't mean it doesn't bother me. I think he takes a lot of unnecessary shots. Everybody thinks it's funny about his weight, but I don't see a lot of people make those same statements about Andy Reid or (Mike) Holmgren or Romeo Crennel or Charlie Weis. I think he unfairly takes it.&quot;

Having just called four well-known coaches fat without any prompting whatsoever, Scott moved on to the next question without blinking an eye. He spoke openly about why he is the way he is, how badly he wants to beat the Steelers and the ribbing his wife has given him for his postgame performance in New England. It was pure entertainment, which is part of what Bart Scott brings to these very entertaining Jets.

&quot;He definitely has a future in pro wrestling,&quot; Jets defensive lineman Sione Pouha said. &quot;I just want to be his tag-team partner.&quot;

In Scott's honor, or perhaps at his behest, a classic monologue from Randy &quot;Macho Man&quot; Savage blared through part of the Jets' practice Thursday. Paolantonio was in the house as well, and he and his ESPN crew were working on a feature spoof of the Scott interview. They had security guards and receptionists around the facility saying &quot;Can't wait&quot; into the cameras. Ryan began his news conference by saying &quot;I know everybody CAN'T WAIT for the injury report...&quot; And when Scott's news conference was finished, Paolantonio and the ESPN crew pulled him aside to shoot the capper for the spoof, in which Scott says to Paolantonio, &quot;See you in Pittsburgh,&quot; Paolantonio says, &quot;Can't wait,&quot; and Scott looks at the camera and says, &quot;Back to you.&quot;

&quot;I have a title belt,&quot; Scott said when he was done with the spoof. &quot;Hopefully I'll get to break it out like Aaron Rodgers.&quot;

One more win, and Bart Scott will get to take this act to Dallas, where he's sure to be one of the stars of Super Bowl media day.

Surely, everyone who'll be there to cover the Super Bowl feels the same way about that possibility.

&quot;Can't wait!&quot;

&quot;He's the guy that makes the noise,&quot; receiver Braylon Edwards said. &quot;He's an old-school football player. Talks a lot of trash, but when he gets on the field, he's hardcore. He goes out there and backs it up.&quot;

Scott is a proud trash-talker who's studied, practiced and honed the craft the way Muhammad Ali once did. Asked Thursday if he had a role model, be it Ali or someone else, Scott didn't hesitate.